Doctor of Executive Leadership Program Outcome #3
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Assemble, align, and reconfigure tangible and intangible assets to sustain organizations’, communities’, or institutions’ viability for the future.
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The union vote was significant for the hospital's operations. This process forced the executive management team to execute a strategy of educating employees about the impact of both having a union and not having a union. During this campaign, all resources were put into the strategy of ensuring that all employees understood what Dartmouth Health was bringing to the table and, more importantly, trusting in the leadership team at the hospital. This was both an internal and an external battle, with news articles and many people taking to social media to express their views. It was important for the leadership team to show poise and confidence in their ability to lead the hospital without employees needing employee representation to discuss challenges. ​
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Hampstead Hospital, a pediatric and adolescent psychiatric facility in New Hampshire, faced significant staffing challenges after being acquired by the state in 2022, including burnout and high turnover. In the midst of a critical union election, executive leadership implemented a strategy centered on direct engagement, transparency, and visibility—personally connecting with staff across all shifts over six weeks. This hands-on approach, paired with efforts to create a supportive and responsive work environment, resonated with employees and built trust. The result was a strong voter turnout of over 90%, with the union being voted down by a 2-to-1 margin, signaling staff confidence in the current leadership and a shared vision for the hospital’s future
Doctor of Executive Leadership Program Outcome #6
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Generate and critically evaluate new knowledge, conserve the most important ideas and findings that are a legacy of past and current work and engage in the transformational work of communicating knowledge responsibly to others.
This campaign was about listening and aligning the past practices of Hampstead Hospital with the current and future practices of Hampstead Hospital as a member of Dartmouth Health. Through informational sessions, town halls, and forums with staff, the necessary information was provided for each staff member to make an informed decision on whether or not they wanted a union representing them.